Summer Peaches
by Sandoz
Summary: [Set During Book 3, KileyMomo] Momo says goodbye to an old love, and runs into the arms of a new one. Sometimes, saying I love you can be as simple as sharing a peach...


Summer Peaches

A Peach Girl Fanfic by Sandoz

Fanfic Begun: 6/26/02

Fanfic Complete: 6/5/03****

Disclaimer: Peach Girl belongs to the talented Miwa Ueda, not me, m'kay?

*** * ***

"I'm sorry, Toji. I can't…I just can't stay together with you."

With those words, Momo turned away from the boy that had been her first love. She just couldn't bear to see the look of hurt in his eyes.

"But why?" Toji began, "I'm serious, Momo. I really want to be with you. Can't we give it another shot?"

"No." the dark-skinned girl bit her lip, and felt the sting of tears behind her eyelids. She fought them back. "Believe me, Toji, I'm sorry…but…it's over."

Unable to fight the pain any longer, she ran. Momo heard Toji call after her, but she never looked back. The cafeteria doors slammed shut, leaving the boy alone.

*** * ***

There was a pit in Kiley Okayasu's stomach that he couldn't quite get rid of. He fancied himself to be a carefree, happy-go-lucky guy, so he was not used to feeling so rotten. After engineering Sae's downfall and Momo and Toji's reunion, he had sauntered out into the school courtyard to deal with his thoughts. 

_Well, I guess things are right where they should be,_ Kiley thought. The Queen of Mean had been dethroned, and now his peach princess could live happily ever after with her prince. Who, he added sadly, was not him. He stuck a hand in his schoolbag, feeling the present he had planned on giving the victorious girl. An image briefly appeared in his mind of Toji and Momo, who were locked together in a loving embrace. 

The pit in his stomach grew larger.

*** * ***

The rest of the afternoon disappeared in a whirlwind for Momo. Desperate to get thoughts of Toji out of her mind, she threw every fiber of her being into the swimming matches, and came out victorious. There was a great cheer from her classmates as Year One Class Three was declared the winner of the event. Momo emerged from the water with a smile on her face, the other troubling events of the day temporarily forgotten. As she dried herself off with a towel, a grinning Kako ran up to her.

"Wow, Momo, that was so awesome!" she gushed.

"Thanks!" the fair-haired teen blushed a little bit at the sudden praise.

Kako's face fell, as if she wanted to say something a tad uncomfortable. 

"What is it?" Momo asked.

"Um, Momo…" Kako looked down at the ground, "The other girls and I…we're really sorry about how we treated you before. We didn't know what the real Sae was like. Can you, um, forgive us?"

Momo blinked, as if in shock. She looked over Kako's shoulder, and saw the other two girls in Sae's old group, Aoi and Mari, come forward.

"Yeah." The longhaired girl, Aoi, said. "We were jerks. Sorry." Mari nodded in agreement.

Momo's face lit up with a smile. "It's okay, you guys. Thanks. You're forgiven."

_"Whew."_ Kako gratefully sighed. Then, with a laugh, she grabbed Momo's arm. "Well, come on, already! We can't have the guest of honor late for our victory celebration, can we?"

"Totally!" Mari cheered.

"It'll be great to see you and Toji back together!" Aoi added with enthusiasm.

"T-Toji?" Momo stammered. "He'll be there?"

"Of course!" Kako replied. 

"In that case…" Momo removed her arm from Kako's grasp, "Count me out."

"You're not going?" Mari and Aoi asked in stereo.

Momo sighed, brushing a stray hair from her eyes. "It's been a long day, and I'm way tired. I'm gonna head home, but save me a piece of cake, ok?" she flashed a weary smile before disappearing into the girl's locker room. 

Mari shrugged. "Bummer."

"Yeah…" Kako put her hands on her hips. "I thought she'd be happy."

*** * ***

With a heavy heart, Momo showered and changed back into her school uniform. Pulling on her sweater, she cringed at the soreness of her limbs. It had been a long time since she had such a vigorous workout. She sat down on a bench, and rubbed her aching shoulders. She felt so…deflated.

The faraway sound of laughter echoed in the empty locker room. _It must be the Victory Party_, Momo thought to herself. It sounded like everyone was having fun. _I should be having fun too_, she reasoned. _After all, Sae's been exposed for the conniving little witch she is, so I have nothing to fear anymore_. _Except…_

"Toji," she whispered. Part of her wanted to run to the party, find the boy, and tell him that she didn't mean what she said, and that she'd be his again. That was all she had ever wanted, right? So why did things feel so wrong?

She closed her eyes, and saw a familiar smile looking back at her. And a voice, light and cheery, laughed, "Smile, Momo!"

It suddenly occurred to her that this was the place where she and Kiley had shared their last embrace. The girl could still feel his strong arms around her, and the sensation of his silken hair brushing against her cheek. She had been too shocked to respond when he held her, but looking back on it, Momo knew that moment _had_ felt right. More right than anything else…

"I'm sorry, Toji…but my heart isn't yours anymore."

Having made her resolution, Momo picked up her bag, and left the school behind.

*** * ***

Kiley had avoided the swim-meet, as he didn't want to see any painful reminders of his loss. As sad as he was, he reminded himself that Momo was happy, and that was far more important than anything else. Her smile danced in his thoughts as he lazily crossed the street on his way back home.

Momo hadn't realized how tired she was until she began her trek back to her house. Her legs cried out in protest with every stride. The bronze young girl's head hung low, and she didn't even notice all the people she nearly walked into. She was depressed. She was exhausted. And then, suddenly, there _he_ was, like manna in the desert, or a Buddha in hell. Their eyes met, and the moment seemed to stretch on forever.

Kiley and Momo stared blankly at each other, their eyes wide. It was Kiley who blinked first, and his expression went from surprise to joy.

"Hey, Momo!" he flashed his famous playboy grin.

"Kiley…" Momo swallowed, "Hi."

"I heard you won the swim-meet. Congratulations!" 

"Oh, thanks." She returned the smile, though hers was far less bright. She felt rather awkward, though she noticed her companion seemed completely unbothered by the fact that he had seemingly lost his dream girl.        

Kiley's smile faded when he saw Momo's troubled expression.

"So, where's your other half?" he asked, thrusting his hands in his pockets.

"Toji? Well…" Momo bit her lip, "I broke up with him. For good this time."

"WHAAAAAAT?!" Kiley's jaw dropped. "The path to your happiness is clear! Why would you want to end it all?" 

"Because!" Momo cried defiantly, "I saw the real him!"

The boy raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I loved Toji. I thought he was different from everyone else—that he liked the real me, and saw past how I looked. But even though I was his girlfriend, it was easier for him to believe _I_ was the lying to him, because it _looked_ like something I'd do. He didn't see the real me at all." Her face fell, and she fought off bitter tears. 

"But, Momo…" Kiley put a sympathetic hand on her shoulder, "It isn't fair to blame Toji. Sae manipulated him. She worked him like a punch-press--"

"I know! But he obviously didn't have enough faith or trust in me to stand by me to begin with!"

"Oh, Momo…"

"Kiley, let me finish!" she sobbed. "When he asked to get back together, I should have been happy. I should have said 'yes.' But I didn't…because when he said those words, I realized I didn't want him anymore. My heart belongs to someone else…" Momo slowly wrapped her arms around the raven-haired boy's waist, earning a slight gasp from him. "So I said goodbye to Toji."

Stunned, Kiley wiped the tears from her cheek. Momo looked up at him, and met his eyes. They smiled at each other.

"I want to be with _you_, Kiley."

*** * ***

"So…you're serious about this?"

Momo and Kiley stopped in front of the gate to her home, both somewhat giddy and embarrassed. Momo nodded her head, hoping she didn't blush. "Are you?"

"Oh, yeah! Totally!" The raven-haired boy grinned eagerly. "But I want you to be happy, you know? And I don't want to compete with Toji…"

Momo reached forward, and surprised him by taking his hand. Her gentle squeeze seemed to tell him, '_you won't_.'

After a moment or two the she said, "Well, I better get inside. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Something registered in Kiley's brain, and his eyes widened. "Tomorrow's our last day isn't it? Before summer?"

"Mmm-hmm."

"I'll _definitely_ see you." He winked, earning a light laugh from the girl beside him. She waved goodbye and opened the gate, but was startled when he snatched her hand, drawing her towards him. He closed his eyes and leaned in for a kiss, and, thinking it was another one of "Wiley Kiley's" little games, Momo tried to playfully swat him away. She missed however, and almost cringed. She then felt his lips lightly brush her cheek, and any anger she might have felt over the brusque gesture melted away. 

He pulled away, wearing that irritatingly gorgeous grin of his. 

"Just a little goodbye kiss, pussycat."

Momo didn't know whether to laugh or sigh. She settled with a smile. "Oh, go away, you." She gave him a small punch in the arm, and he reeled back as if struck by force.

"Oh! My lady has wounded me!" he cried dramatically, flailing his arms wildly. He wandered a little too close to the neighbor's fence, and the nasty little yap-dog of Mrs. Yoshida's barked at him angrily for disturbing its nap. 

"Yeesh! Guess I've worn out my welcome!" murmured Kiley as he pulled his hand away from the dog's snapping mouth. He glanced back at Momo, and they exchanged smiles. With that Kiley raised his hand and waved, before moseying down the street. Momo didn't go inside until he was long out of sight. 

*** * ***

_The days are sure getting hotter_, thought Momo as she stepped out of the shower into her humid bedroom. Her long, fair hair wrapped up in a towel, she pulled on her lightweight pajamas and then collapsed atop her bed, clutching a pillow. Outside the sun had set, and the sky was an inky black illuminated by dozens upon dozens of glimmering stars. 

As she drifted off, three faces danced in Momo's mind. She saw Sae, utterly defeated, a shell of her former, evil self. Momo smiled; apparently there _was_ justice in the world. Her joy dissipated as she thought of Toji, and how hurt he looked when she refused him. She hated to see him that way, but part of her insisted, let _him_ see what it feels like. Toji's frown was replaced with a smile that belonged to Kiley. Kiley Okayasu, who was unlike Toji in nearly every respect. He had been there for her from the very beginning, she realized, even when she thought he was a no good playboy. She had been so wrapped up in Toji, a boy who would never know just what he had until it left him, that she failed to notice the one who had given her everything she ever wanted. Friendship, understanding, and maybe even love. 

A light tapping on her window interrupted the girl's thoughts. She ignored it, but it ceaselessly continued. Jumping out of bed, an indignant Momo threw open the window just as a tiny pebble whizzed by her cheek. Looking down, Momo saw a figure standing in the shadows by the front gate, and it had been he who had tossed the rocks to get her attention.

_Toji!?_ Once, he had stopped by her house at a late hour, wanting a heart-to-heart. Was that him now, in the shadows? Did he have something to say to her? She felt excitement at the idea, and then cursed herself for thinking such things.

_Toji and I are through_, she insisted. _Kiley's the only guy for me. _And sure enough, the boy who stepped into the glare of the porch light was not the blonde ex-flame, but the smiling new beau. 

"Hi, Momo!" called Kiley. "I didn't hit you or anything, did I?"

"What are you doing?!"

"Sorry, I forgot to give you something! Catch!" He reached into the schoolbag hanging off his shoulder and pulled out something. With an arm that might have won him a position on the baseball team, he threw it up. Momo deftly caught it, and gasped. It was a peach.

"Oh, Kiley…thank you!"

"I've got another one!" he lifted his arm again, but Momo stopped him.

"Wait, I'm coming down!"

Before he could blink, Momo was rushing down the stairs and bursting out of the front door, peach in hand. She felt her cheeks turn red and secretly hoped the neighbors weren't awake. The last thing she needed was to hear stories about how she ran outside half-naked to talk with some guy. 

Kiley looked her over, taking in the hair wrapped high atop her head and the baggy pink pajamas that were missing a button or two. He could faintly smell the peaches and cream body lotion she had dabbed on herself after her shower, and wondered if it was maybe what heaven smelled like.

Momo stared at Kiley. He wore long khaki shorts and a dark blue shirt that fit his lean form nicely. It was the first time she had ever seen him outside of school clothes, and it would probably not be the last, she thought with a gleam of happiness. 

"I just wanted to say thank you up close," said Momo after a beat. She glanced at the peach, round, pink, and fresh. "It looks delicious."

Kiley handed her the second fruit. "I meant to give these to you after the swimming meet. Kinda a congratulatory thing. But with everything _else_ that went on earlier today it slipped my mind."

"Kiley…you meant to give these to me and _Toji_, right?"

He made a face. Busted. "It was a gift for the peach princess and her prince."

"Oh…!" Momo suddenly bridged the distance between them, wrapping her arms around his middle. "You really, really shouldn't have…"

"It's all right. Really. I wanted to, Momo. Enjoy them." As their bodies slowly separated Momo slipped the second peach back in his open hand. "Hmm?"

"Come on, let's sit," she instructed, and the two teens sat down on the small stone wall outside her house. Momo took a bite out of her peach, savoring its sweet flavor. Kiley watched her curiously, unsure of what to do.

"You said it was for the princess and her _prince_, right?" smiled Momo. "So eat up. Let's enjoy this."

Kiley flashed a winsome grin, and obeyed.

The young couple sat on the stone wall together and savored the fresh summer fruit, and they would be sitting beside one another long after the peaches were gone. 

* * * 

End.

* * * 


End file.
